Cars that don't rust?

Author
Discussion

Watchman

6,391 posts

244 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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My Scooby is pretty rust free. The panels are largely aluminium, as is much of the suspension, the engine block, the gearbox casing. It's done 105K miles and is 7 years old with no rust other than surface rust on the inside of the SS exhaust and on the cast diff casing.

nottyash

4,670 posts

194 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Contigo said:
Captain Muppet said:
My 15 year old Elise chassis looks like new.
Rust is the least of your worries, a crack however biggrin
Yeh, and the K series enginelaugh

Hoygo

725 posts

160 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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De Lorean,all Renault Alpines.

flatline84

1,060 posts

156 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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A friend of mine run a bodyshop. He had a otherwise sound mechanical W124 230E with quite a bit of rust, which he decided to tear down to molecules as a "fun experiment" ( doesnt cost him anything as he actually owns the shop).

It ended up looking like new and with the proper coating etc to protect. HOWEVER, within 2-3 years it came back bubbling up underneath the paint. Granted this car was used around the year, but still, there is a lesson to be learnt here.

Unless you actually SWAP the panels for new ones, the rust comes back way faster on previously rusted parts...

Morale of the story: Find a untainted car in the first place, any cars with previous rust it will come back again and again and again

300bhp/ton

Original Poster:

41,030 posts

189 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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GC8 said:
Properly cared for and not crashed/repaired 944s took twenty years to rust. When they were ten years old they still looked like new.

Its probably unfair to liken them to Ford Pumas which were starting to bubble around the arches at between five and ten years old (at ten some had been scrapped!).
True, although I was meaning if you where looking to buy either today, then rust would be a major thing you'd want to check for on either.

Eighteeteewhy

7,259 posts

167 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Pug 205s are very resistant against rust. Fully galvanised body.

300bhp/ton

Original Poster:

41,030 posts

189 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Dodsy said:
Also some cars like the JAG XJ were alloy bodied.
Don't some of the x308 suffer corrosion and flaky paint though. I remember reading something about it.

300bhp/ton

Original Poster:

41,030 posts

189 months

Friday 20th April 2012
quotequote all
Watchman said:
My Scooby is pretty rust free. The panels are largely aluminium, as is much of the suspension, the engine block, the gearbox casing. It's done 105K miles and is 7 years old with no rust other than surface rust on the inside of the SS exhaust and on the cast diff casing.
lol not sure something as young as 7 years old really counts though tongue out give it another 20 then let us know wink

DonkeyApple

54,923 posts

168 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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300bhp/ton said:
Watchman said:
My Scooby is pretty rust free. The panels are largely aluminium, as is much of the suspension, the engine block, the gearbox casing. It's done 105K miles and is 7 years old with no rust other than surface rust on the inside of the SS exhaust and on the cast diff casing.
lol not sure something as young as 7 years old really counts though tongue out give it another 20 then let us know wink
A friend still has a Scooby he bought in the mid early 90s. It's sat outside for the last 10 years and he seems to only use it as a back-up car or for ski trips and it looks imaculate. I asked him the other day if it was rotting underneath and the chap who did the MOT had commented that it was completely solid.

Of course, the real genius to stop a car from rusting is to do what Lancia did and build them out of iron oxide in the first instance. biggrin

300bhp/ton

Original Poster:

41,030 posts

189 months

Friday 20th April 2012
quotequote all
Eighteeteewhy said:
Pug 205s are very resistant against rust. Fully galvanised body.
That's one I didn't know about. Thanks smile

CYMR0

3,940 posts

199 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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C.A.R. said:
Peugeot 306. Not a bit of rust (bar the odd fixture/fitting bolt in the engine bay)
This. I don't know what they're made of but it appears to be some kind of advanced alien technology compared to BMWs, Mercedes, and Fords of the era. Same goes for 205s and 206s as well actually.

AnotherClarkey

3,589 posts

188 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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CYMR0 said:
C.A.R. said:
Peugeot 306. Not a bit of rust (bar the odd fixture/fitting bolt in the engine bay)
This. I don't know what they're made of but it appears to be some kind of advanced alien technology compared to BMWs, Mercedes, and Fords of the era. Same goes for 205s and 206s as well actually.
Citroens are good too (as you may expect) - my Xantia was totally rust free and I have heard that Xsaras are similarly resistant.

flatline84

1,060 posts

156 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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CYMR0 said:
This. I don't know what they're made of but it appears to be some kind of advanced alien technology compared to BMWs, Mercedes, and Fords of the era. Same goes for 205s and 206s as well actually.
rofl

CampDavid

9,145 posts

197 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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On a long enough time scale the survival rate for everyone reaches zero but in answer to your question, a fair amount of stuff you would expect to rust, doesn't. A first gen Punto for example won't rust if cared for

morgrp

4,128 posts

197 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Excluding the hopeless 400 series, all volvo's since the 740 barely rust - if they do it's often a result of poorly repaired accident damage

Edit: that even includes rust resistant brake Lines on the 700, 800/v70 and 900 series

Edited by morgrp on Friday 20th April 13:45

petrolsniffer

2,461 posts

173 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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CYMR0 said:
This. I don't know what they're made of but it appears to be some kind of advanced alien technology compared to BMWs, Mercedes, and Fords of the era. Same goes for 205s and 206s as well actually.
Zinc phorescent paint-primer process smile

I do have some surface rust appearing on one of my 205's sills but nothing as bad as fords and vauxhalls of the same era

Locke

1,279 posts

183 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Has anyone else ever noticed the Mercedes-Benz vans rust for fun? Noticed rust on the bottom of the rear doors of an 09 plate the other day!

flatline84

1,060 posts

156 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Locke said:
Has anyone else ever noticed the Mercedes-Benz vans rust for fun? Noticed rust on the bottom of the rear doors of an 09 plate the other day!
Saw a 6 month old one with rust on the roof, owner ( carpenter) barely believed his own eyes..

J4CKO

41,287 posts

199 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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300, go over to Retro Rides into the Readers Rides section and the guys in there have a whole different concept of rusty, it astounds me what can be salvaged by a suitably determined nutcase with an angle grinder and a Mig welder. sometimes it is just a case of bolting stuff on and off. Our Fiat 500 failed the MOT so me and a mate set to and it had a new sill and front floorpan in a day or so

It is only a losing battle if you let it, some cars are worse than others, my 944 has a few small spots but I have the mindset to just sort it, not that it is so bad anyway, I had a look in the sills with an endo cam and its just grey paint in there which wa a relief as some look like the Titanic (now, not 100 years ago) in there.




Major Fallout

5,278 posts

230 months

Friday 20th April 2012
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Model T fords!
This is part of a bonnet off a 1920 ford T, its only thin steal and its spent most of its 92 years outside.

Im guessing the paint started to flake off after about 20-30 years, so parts have been bare metal and open to the elements for 60 years.
And it still only has surface rust, a quick oat blast and its good to paint.